The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1887-07-02
THE CANAL.
AbOminabie Condition of the Canal amt
Side Cut.--A Lovely Canal Com.
mission.

Accountable Condition of the Canal amt
-Cut.--A Lovely Canal Com.
mission.
Having heard, from time to time, consid.
cradle complaint from various sources about
the condition of the canal and It's deporable
state Of dilapidatien, the FREE TRADER has
this week taken pains to inquire into the
facts Of the case, and has found the facts to
be much worse than expected. The canal is
In simply = wretched condition, There has
been no thorough dredging done at this point
for many years. Boats get stuck In the mud
every little while, and the boatmen are com.
planning bitterly Of the bars and the general
dilapidation Of the ditch.
Wishing to get at the exact truth Of the
matter, and without making any erroneous or
exaggerated statements, we talked with sew
eral gentlemen Of this city who are not in
terested parties any more than that they pat.
ronise the canal by shipping over 1t. The
tone Of the remarks Of all was the same:
that the canal is being allowed to run
down, while the Commissioners have large
amount Of money for political buncombe or
other purposes. Mr.. Young, Of the firm Of
Young & Nash, one of the biggest lumber
firm on the canal, said that the condition Of
the canal was simply abominable
"Why, it's all mud-a big frog pond, " said
Mr.. Young. ave cant get boat any where
near our dock for the mud. We have to run
long timbers from the boat to shore, or else
drop our lumber into the water and float it
ashore. They won't spend a cent to help US
out. They GIT some II 400 year from us
in tolls, and we think we are entitled to
some little consideration. Two years ago,
when the new Commissioners came into
office, we brought all our influence to bear
to get them to dredge out the canal by eur
yards You see the water comes in here
from the feeder, right around this corner,
and 1t fills up the channel pretty fast. Well,
we urged that dredge be sent here, and SO
they sent little old cheap thing that they
had rugged up to save expense for labor, and
that little business got out here and went to
dipping up mud and putting it on the bank
of the canal, right where they dipped it out.
Of course that wouldn't do. Three or four
feet of mud isn't very good to haul lumber
over, and it would take two or three years
to become hard, so we went out and told
them to let up that that wouldn't do. They
said that was the best they could do for us
and called the dredge away, and they havn't
done anything since, 1t would have been a
very little more trouble and expense to load
the mud into mud boats and dump ii on low
ground somewhere
Similar inquiries from other canal patrons
ELECTED similar replies 1t is unquestion-
ably fact that the canal is in very bad
shape. The side cut here at Ottawa is also
in state of dilapidation. The walls are
tumbling down, the bottom is full OF mud,
and is getting to be in sorry plight al
together.
It is not only at Ottawa that evidences OF
the rapidly approaching filling up of the
canal, under the present system of repairs
| is to be SEEN The dredge in use at Young
g. Nash's has been ia use elsewhere. 1t dips
out the mud; deposits it on the bank, from
which it runs back into the canal again, Fl IL
ing up the ditch in new place
If the Commissioners were aiming to dry
up the old ditch, they couldn't do it faster
than by the present system of supervision.
There is no lack of necessary funds to make
the necessary repairs in proper way, since
they now have in their treasury some 500,
900 in addition to the amount appropriated
by the state, $4,000 more. What is the
matter with them anyway? Do they think
they can make in this way record for econ
omical administration for political effect!
Or do they get "interest on balances or
what is the matter anyhow?